


Rogue

by majime



Category: Golden Child (Korea Band)
Genre: M/M, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-19
Updated: 2018-07-14
Packaged: 2019-05-09 00:09:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,993
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14705414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/majime/pseuds/majime
Summary: In which Jangjun is the leader of young rogue wolves. Their life in isolation has been peaceful and uneventful until another pack locates them.A story about finding home.





	1. BASIC PROFILE

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, jangyoonists~ please don't come after me with pitchforks and torches! I swear this ABO verse is not your typical ABO verse. This is kinda fluffy~ I got the idea while rewatching Woollimpick ep. 5 when Jangjun was teamed with Seungmin, Jaehyun, Donghyun, and Joochan. They looked like the smol underdogs compared to the other team where the tall members were XD but the child team were solid there like rogue wolves, so yeah this popped out!

**BASIC PROFILE**

**Daeyeol**

_Alpha, 24, Dijon wolf, mated_

**Sungyoon**

_Alpha, 22, Pewter wolf, unmated_

**Jaeseok**

_Omega, 22, Mocha wolf, mated_

**Jangjun**

_Omega, 20, Auburn wolf with ivory paws, unmated_

**Youngtaek**

_Beta, 15, Umber wolf, unmated_

**Seungmin**

_Beta, 15, Jet-black wolf, unmated_

**Jaehyun**

_Omega, 13, Ginger wolf, unmated_

**Jibeom**

_Alpha, 13, Golden brown wolf, unmated_

**Donghyun**

_Omega, 13, Solid-caramel wolf, unmated_

**Joochan**

_Alpha, 13, Light gray wolf with dark accents around eyes, unmated_

**Bomin**

_Beta, 6, Snow white wolf, unmated_


	2. i: COLLISION

Winter is coming. Jangjun can feel it in the way the chilly air seeps through the pelt coat wrapped around his torso. In the distance, he could hear the gale, howling and blowing away what few leaves left clinging on the dried up branches of the trees surrounding them. The fire in the cave he calls home has been reduced to mere embers, bathing their sanctuary in almost total darkness. With drowsy eyes, Jangjun glances around the slumbering figures of the young wolves he consider his family. 

In the dark, he makes out tiny Seungmin and little Donghyun huddled together under the same pelt closest to the hearth. Jaehyun is sprawled in the space nearest to Jangjun, frowning and mumbling in his sleep while Joochan is curled up deeper into the cave, quietly sleeping and most likely dreaming about the places he wishes to see someday. A small smile stretches Jangjun’s dry lips. He is especially fond of the young wolves when they are quiet and peaceful like this. But, alas, he cannot dilly-dally any longer. 

Dawn will break soon. 

The young wolves will look for breakfast the moment they open their eyes, so Jangjun gets up with a wide yawn. He neatly folds his pelt and reignites the dying fire. He steps out of the cave, making sure that he makes no sound that will disrupt the young ones’ sleep. He carefully slides a decent-sized boulder to partly shroud the cave’s entrance from other wild animals. Once he’s satisfied, Jangjun turns into his wolf form. 

Jangjun is a magnificent auburn wolf with chocolate brown eyes, ivory paws and ears.

He steps out of his fallen clothes and immediately takes off, following the scent of a group of hares wandering near the river. Jangjun has to be quick and stealthy or they might sense his arrival and runaway. In the back of his mind, he thinks about how he and the kids might need to go hunting again later after breakfast. Winter is coming, therefore, they must start stacking up on food or they would starve. Hunting conditions during winter is horrendous, and once the hares, beavers, and other small animals go into hibernation, hunting them when they are burrowed deep into thick layers of snow and earth would be almost impossible. 

Going after bigger animals such as wild boars and deer requires greater effort not only from Jangjun but from the whole pack. But catching bigger animals will provide them enough food that will last them weeks. Winter might be over once they finish it all off. Seungmin, Jaehyun, Donghyun, and Joochan are healthy and agile kids, but Jangjun is not comfortable risking their safety, so he usually hunts alone. They only hunt as a pack when they really need to. 

Preparing for winter is definitely a situation that calls for group effort.

As Jangjun sprints further away from the clearing, the scent of the hares grow stronger. He could already hear them gnawing on whatever food that they found. He gradually slows down. Now, the scent is so strong that he could taste their blood in his mouth. As he soundlessly rounds up a tall tree with dark thick trunks, he spots the hares all gathered around in a circle. 

_Perfect._

Jangjun bares his sharp teeth and licks them as he prepares to attack. With one swift movement, he jumps and bites the neck of biggest one and claws at the other two with his paws. The other two have ran away, but Jangjun decides to let them go. The three hares will be more than enough for breakfast. He shakes his snout side to side to kill off the hare in his mouth, and once it is no longer moving, he proceeds to kill the other two by snapping their necks beneath his strong paws. Jangjun grabs their limp bodies with his mouth and heads back to the cave. This could last them until tomorrow.

What a good way to start the day. 

Upon reaching the cave, Jangjun transforms back into his human form and quickly steps back in his clothes. Donghyun, who is always the first one to wake, will be up soon, so Jangjun hurriedly cleans himself and his kills. As Jangjun is filleting the second hare with his dagger, he feels the familiar warmth at the pit of his belly. 

_Bubbling, churning and coiling._

A sign that Jangjun’s heat will come very soon. It might come before the fall of the year’s first snow. 

Being an omega, there have been difficulties in trying to survive with four young wolves depending on you, but Jangjun has managed to keep them safe and well-fed for years. They made it even without the protection of belonging in a proper pack. 

They are rogue wolves. The so-called spoils and the exiles of society. 

Seungmin and Donghyun have similar origins. Seungmin was unwanted by his father when his mother died a painful death while giving birth to him. He was then adopted by a good family for a few years until his adoptive mother and adoptive sisters perished due to an unknown disease. At the tender age of ten, Seungmin was driven out from his pack’s territory. They were under the impression that bad luck and grief followed Seungmin. 

Donghyun on the other hand, was already unwanted from the moment he was conceived. Born in a severely poor family who could no longer feed another mouth. He had gone through terrible abuse for as long as he could remember. He snapped one day and decided to run away during the night. He managed to escape but not before accidentally knocking over a gas lamp and setting their house on fire. The fire effectively killed his abusive parents, his siblings, and their neighbors whose homes were also devoured by the fire. Terrified of the persecution he would undoubtedly face, Donghyun slipped out of the territory without looking back.

Jangjun found Donghyun first, valiantly running after a wild boar in his tiny wolf form. At first, Donghyun didn’t trust Jangjun. Still covered in cuts and bruises inflicted by his own parents, Donghyun growled at Jangjun and even bit his arm, but Donghyun soon realized that Jangjun only meant to nurture him back to health and not harm him at all. Seungmin sort of found Jangjun and Donghyun by himself. The two of them were grilling the beaver they managed to kill and the smell lured the famished Seungmin to them. 

“Jangjun hyung.”

At the sound of Joochan’s voice, Jangjun looks over to the entrance of the cave. 

“Yes, my little alpha?” Jangjun questions with a smile. 

His youngest, Joochan, is the only alpha in their little family. In spite this, however, Joochan is far too tiny and a little weak to be considered a proper alpha. He implies that his inadequacy as an alpha was the reason he was unwanted by his pack. But Joochan still refuses to tell Jangjun his life story, so the omega doesn’t really know much about Joochan. Nevertheless, his origin and background is not of importance. Joochan is the most caring and kindest little alpha that Jangjun has ever met, so he accepted him into their growing family with open arms.

“Jaehyun is sick. I touched him and he’s really hot,” Joochan informs him. 

Jangjun puts his dagger down and wipes his hands on his clothes. 

“Not again,” Jangjun whispers to himself. “Joochan-ah, will you please put some salt on those fillets and start the fire for hyung?”

“Sure, hyung!” Joochan eagerly says.

Jangjun smiles at him and affectionately ruffles his wild fringes, “Thank you. You really are my reliable little man.”

Entering the cave, Jangjun sees that Donghyun is worriedly crouched next to Jaehyun’s shivering form. Even Seungmin, who loves sleep more than anything in the world, is also by Jaehyun’s side, so Jangjun’s worry rises. If Seungmin deemed it worthy to lose sleep over, it must be serious. 

“Jaehyun-ah?” Jangjun whispers, putting his hand on Jaehyun’s forehead. He immediately draws back his hand in surprise. 

“What’s wrong with him, hyung?” Seungmin asks, brows knitting together in concern. 

“He has a very high fever,” Jangjun sighs, pulling the pelt tighter around Jaehyun. “Seungmin-ah, can you please see if we still have some willow leaves?”

Seungmin quickly jumps into action, while Donghyun says without having to be told anymore, “I’ll go fetch hyung a basin of cold water and clean cloth.”

“We still have willow leaves, hyung!” Seungmin says, brandishing them in the air. “Joochan is already boiling the water for it.”

‘Thank you, Seungmin-ah,” Jangjun says and he watches Seungmin exit the cave again before turning his attention back to Jaehyun. 

He would have felt proud that the kids already know what to do when someone catches a fever, but instead, Jangjun feels extremely worried. This is the fourth time in a month that Jaehyun caught a very high fever. 

Among the children under his care, Jaehyun is the most fragile. Not only because of his very sheltered upbringing before, but also because of the monsters that still haunt him to this day. All of them had rough pasts, but Jaehyun’s is probably the most traumatizing one. 

Jaehyun was the youngest son of a pack leader. He was very well taken care of, his parents and his brother loved and cherished him very much, but their happy life was shattered when was an uprising against Jaehyun’s father occured. Their pack members accused him of corrupting their resources and was eventually persecuted unjustly. Jaehyun, his mother, and his brother tried to escape the angry pack members. His mother, sacrificed herself to keep the mob away from her sons. Unfortunately, the angry pack members found Jaehyun and his older brother after two days of hiding. Jaehyun’s older brother was brutally murdered in front of him. 

Jaehyun only survived because he was an omega.

They thought he was far too weak to survive alone in the wild for a long time. Well, they weren’t exactly wrong. If Joochan didn’t find Jaehyun while they were hunting, the latter would have died already from starvation. He was mute for months. The only times Jangjun heard his voice were when he had nightmares almost every night. Jaehyun started to speak and his nightmares gradually stopped when he began to trust Jangjun and the others. He’s still quiet compared to the others, but his eyes no longer looked as disturbed as before. They’re much happier and brighter now. 

But with how often he’s catching a high fever, Jangjun is worried that Jaehyun’s past is coming back to haunt him once again.

“Here’s water and cloth, hyung,” Donghyun suddenly speaks.

Jangjun blinks and realizes that he had been spacing out for quite a while, so he shakes his head to clear his thoughts. 

“He’s been having bad dreams again, isn’t he?” Donghyun quietly says as Jangjun dips the cloth in the cold water. 

“You think so?” Jangjun says, sponging Jaehyun’s hot forehead and arms with the wet cloth. 

Donghyun nods and gravely looks at Jaehyun. 

“Did you hear him?” Jangjun asks. 

Again, Donghyun silently nods and Jangjun continues to sponge sweat off Jaehyun’s temple.

“I think he’s dreaming of his hyung again. You know, his real hyung,” Donghyun says after a few beats of silence.

“What makes you say so, Donghyun-ah?” Jangjun curiously inquires. 

“Jaehyun keeps whispering ‘come back, come back, don’t leave me, hyung’ in his sleep,” Donghyun answers. 

“He’s not screaming anymore?” Jangjun says.

Donghyun slowly shakes his head. “But I like it better when he screams. At least, we would know and we could wake him up and comfort him.” 

A tear falls on Donghyun’s cheek, effectively tugging Jangjun’s heartstrings. He rests the wet towel on Jaehyun’s forehead and puts his arms around Donghyun’s petit form. 

“I know, Donghyun-ah. I know,” Jangjun whispers. 

“I wish we can make those bad dreams go away and bring his hyung back,” Donghyun sobs against Jangjun’s shirt. 

Jangjun hushes Donghyun and comfortingly rubs his back. Donghyun might seem like the coldest and standoffish among them all, but Jangjun knows just how much Donghyun cares for all of them. 

“We’ll just give him a lot of love, okay?” Jangjun assures him. “Those bad dreams might go away once Jaehyunnie feels that we will love and protect him very much.”

“I hope so, Jangjun hyung.”

***

Once Jaehyun goes back to sleep after drinking the willow tea, Jangjun and the other three finally gather around the small makeshift stone table to have their breakfast. The wind is relatively warmer than it had been just about an hour ago because the sun has finally risen fully. Seungmin and Joochan are arguing who gets to eat the other leg of the hare while Donghyun happily eats the leaner part of the animal. Jangjun watches Seungmin ball his little hands into fists and Joochan flushing a little red in annoyance. Petty arguments such as this are not unusual on their dining table. Pups like squabbling and Jangjun finds that not meddling and letting them settle their disputes is the best way to deal with it. But given today’s circumstances, Jangjun decides to mediate between the two. 

“You can have the leg, Seungmin,” Jangjun declares, earning a look of pure betrayal from Joochan. 

“But hyuuuuuung!” Joochan whines.

Jangjun merely purses his lips at Joochan who is now pouting. 

“Just let Seungmin have it, okay? You’re going hunting with Donghyun and I later, anyway.”

With that, Joochan’s eyes widens and sparkles with excitement, hare leg completely forgotten. 

“Really, hyung?” Joochan gasps and when Jangjun nods with a smile he cheers. 

“But what about me, hyung?” Seungmin protests. 

“You get to protect and look after Jaehyun while we’re hunting,” Jangjun says. 

Seungmin’s mouth opens in a wide circle as he apprehensively stares at the hare leg that is now in front of him as if he no longer wants it.

“What if a wild animal attacks, hyung? I can never defend Jaehyun and myself!” Seungmin indignantly expresses. He adds in an undertone, “I’m just a beta.” 

“Seungmin hyung, you’ve never been more wrong!” Donghyun chirps. “You’re definitely much stronger than I am! Why do you think Jangjun hyung isn’t leaving Jaehyun with me? I can never defend Jaehyun. I’m far too small to do that.”

“Donghyun’s right, Seungmin-ah. You may be a beta, but you’re strong and fierce, okay?” Jangjun says. 

“Like Jangjun hyung,” Joochan adds, patting Seungmin on the shoulder.

Seungmin looks flattered that he had been compared to Jangjun, but he still looks a little hesitant. He does not say anything anymore, so they all continue finishing their breakfast. 

Time flies by as they accomplish their morning chores, and before they know it, the time has come for Jangjun, Donghyun, and Joochan to finally go hunting. Jangjun slightly fusses over Joochan and Donghyun, making sure that they are dressed warm enough without hindering their ability to move quickly and freely. After being sassed by Donghyun that their clothes are gonna fall off anyway once they transform, Jangjun finally moves on to check on Jaehyun. A sigh of relief comes out of his mouth when he feels that Jaehyun’s fever has significantly reduced. His brows are no longer knitted together and he looks more peaceful now as he sleeps, so Jangjun proceeds to give pointers to Seungmin. 

“We won’t be gone for a long time,” Jangjun assures the small boy. 

“How long?” Seungmin says. 

“An hour and a half at most. We’ll be back before you know it,” Jangjun says. 

Seungmin nods. “If a wild animal attacks?”

“Howl. You know I can hear you no matter where I am in the forest,” Jangjun winks.

“Okay,” Seungmin says in a small voice. 

“You’re braver and stronger than you think, okay? Give yourself a little more credit.”

“Okay.”

“After you howl, you can use this while waiting for us,” Jangjun gives Seungmin a spear, “but only if you really need to, okay? You don’t want to anger whatever it is even before it attacks.”

Having the spear seems to boost Seungmin’s confidence as he finally gives Jangjun a genuine smile. 

***

Jangjun, Donghyun, and Joochan are all in their wolf forms now. Donghyun, a magnificent solid caramel-colored wolf, and Joochan, a gray wolf with dark accents around his eyes that mimic his human eyelids. They have been pursuing a particularly meaty elk in the clearing opposite their cave for fifteen minutes now. Joochan is running after it while Jangjun is circling around to corner it. Donghyun sort of follows Jangjun around, making sure that the elk stays distressed. The elk is wounded when Joochan had bitten its neck. It’s a shame that it managed to shake Joochan off before he completely sank his fangs in. But the wound is deep enough so that it is profusely bleeding and Jangjun is certain that it would only be a matter of seconds before the elk succumbs to its injury.

Donghyun appears out of nowhere. He catches Jangjun off guard as he bounds ever so closely to the elk. One swift jump and Donghyun’s sharp teeth are latched onto the injurred neck of the elk. He fiercely tears through its veins just in time when the elk shakes him off. As the elk slows down, Joochan runs faster to reach it. Jangjun does the same, but halfway towards where the elk has finally fallen, he abruptly halts and gasps. 

Jangjun’s heat is simmering. He feels a wave of mild cramps in his lower abdomen and he feels significantly warmer. 

The cramps have stopped, so Jangjun continues his path towards the fallen elk. Donghyun and Joochan are dutifully sitting by its side, tails wagging as they see Jangjun approaching. Jangjun turns into his human form and unties the bolo knife from his waist. Once he gets closer, however, Joochan catches a whiff of Jangjun and he tilts his head to the side questioningly.

_Hyung, your heat is early?_

“We need to hurry back,” Jangjun says, answering indirectly. He sets out to quickly chop up the elk to make it easier for them to bring it back to their territory for storage.

They have almost made it to their territory when Jangjun is forced to halt once again. He could feel his knees weakening as a sudden wave of his heat washes over him, spreading all over his body from his toes up to the tips of his hair. In between his legs, there is a tell tale sign of his slick discharge. At this rate, his heat will be in full force by night fall. Jangjun breathes deeply, sitting down on the ground as he waits for it to be over. Donghyun is immediately at his side, licking his warm cheek comfortingly while Joochan looks at him with worried gray eyes. 

“It’s okay. Hyung is okay. We’re nearly there,” Jangjun firmly tells them. 

He regains the strength in his legs and in a minute, they are on the move. However, they are paralyzed once again as they hear Seungmin’s distressed howl. 

Jangjun drops the elk. He transforms into his wolf form and hightails for their cave with Donghyun and Joochan running closely on either side. Jangjun breathes in and to his horror, he catches the scent of several unknown wolves. Seungmin lets out another howl and Jangjun speeds up even more. 

Upon finally arriving, Jangjun allows himself to let out a tiny sigh of relief when he sees that neither Seungmin nor Jaehyun are hurt. Their makeshift kitchen is perfectly intact. The only thing that is out of place is the rock covering the cave’s entrance that has been thrown aside. There are six unknown wolves gathered around Seungmin and Jaehyun. Seungmin has already transformed into his jet black wolf form as he stands on-guard with his sharp teeth bared. Jaehyun, still in his human form, is quivering and crying behind Seungmin. Although obviously very frightened and shaken, Seungmin and Jaehyun are untouched. 

Even before Jangjun could make a move, Joochan lets out an angry bark and leaps at one of the unknown wolves. He fiercely rips through the shoulder of a golden brown wolf. It howls in agony, and fights back. Donghyun attacks a particularly large mocha-colored wolf and without hesitation, latches his short yet sharp fangs on the back of its neck. Because Donghyun is small, the wolf cannot easily reach back to remove him, so Donghyun’s teeth rapidly draws blood. 

Jangjun leaps into action when an umber wolf lunges at Donghyun. Jangjun scratches the umber wolf, gnaws at its snout and throws it hard against a tree as adrenaline surges through his bloodstream. A petite snow white wolf whimpers upon seeing that the umber wolf is now unconscious as a result of hitting the tree. Jangjun is unprepared as a dark pewter wolf attacks him even before he could reach the petite snow white wolf. There is a hot white pain in Jangjun’s torso, a sign that he had been deeply wounded. 

His vision moves in and out of focus, blindly dodging attacks. The snow white wolf joins the pewter wolf. Even though the white wolf is obviously still a young pup, it manages to deeply sink its teeth in one of Jangjun’s hind legs. Jangjun yelps in pain, alerting Seungmin who sprints to rescue him at once. Seungmin is now back in his human form, the spear clutched in his hand. He jumps behind the pewter wolf and garrotes it with the spear. The snow white wolf finally leaves Jangjun alone as it attempts to save the pewter wolf. The white wolf is poised to pounce at Seungmin but Jangjun prevents it by tackling it to the ground. 

To his surprise, a much larger dijon wolf fiercely strikes at him, biting his already injured leg to pull him away from the white wolf. Whimpering, Jangjun falls on his back. He stays motionless for a moment, panting as the dijon wolf furiously growls at him while shielding the small white wolf. Jangjun’s injuries are nothing too critical, but he is crippled by the sensation of his heat. 

_No, not now._

The dijon wolf must have caught a whiff of his heat. It is now cautiously approaching him, the snow white wolf closely behind it. 

“Jangjun hyung! Help me!” he hears Jaehyun’s distressed scream.

Jangjun can feel himself slipping in and out of his sense as his heat intensifies. But because of his desperate desire to defend the kids, Jangjun turns back into his human form. He picks up his fallen bolo knife and runs to the entrance of the cave where Jaehyun is backing away from the golden brown wolf. Seeing this, Seungmin, Donghyun, and Joochan immediately follow. Jangjun pushes the golden brown wolf away from Jaehyun, and barricades himself between the unknown wolves and his pups, brandishing his bolo knife at them.

“GET AWAY!” Jangjun bellows. “Harm my pups and I will not hesitate to slit your throats!”

Joochan is still high with fury, trying to fight his way forward to stand next to Jangjun only to be kicked back by Jangjun. 

“I will fight to death!” Jangjun yells. 

His heat is growing more and more intense, his vision is doubling and his brain could barely hold on to his senses. Breathing heavily, he backs the kids into the cave. The large dijon wolf comes forward with the mocha-colored wolf. Jangjun tries to attack with his bolo knife, but his knees buckle. He drops the bolo knife as he falls flat on his stomach, fighting hard to cling onto his consciousness.

“Stop! He’s in heat!” he hears an unfamiliar voice saying. 

Jangjun hears Donghyun growling threateningly as footsteps approach his fallen body, but soon enough, he sees the beautiful face of a man peering over him with furrowed brows. 

“Let’s kill them!” says another unfamiliar voice, causing the beautiful man to look outraged. 

Joochan barks furiously at that, but the beautiful man hushes him. 

“They’re just pups, Jibeom!” 

“Sungyoon hyung had been brutally hurt! They deserve it!” Jibeom protests. 

“We’re not killing anybody.” 

Another face swims in Jangjun’s line of vision. A man with dijon hair, kind eyes and prominent bone structure. 

“He needs help. They need help,” the beautiful man declares.

That’s the last thing Jangjun hears before his body fully succumbs to his heat and his consciousness slips away.


	3. ii: CONNECTION

When consciousness finds him once again, Jangjun opens his eyes to a sight that is familiar yet foreign to him. Familiar due to the traditional way that the sleeping quarter has been set up yet foreign because this is the first time he has seen this place. It takes a few more seconds before he realizes that he has such a terrible headache that his eyes are being forced to close once again. He brings his right hand up to his temple to massage the side of his head in a feeble attempt to ease his agony.

_What happened? ___

__Jangjun attempts to sit up, but the sharp pain on his torso and on his left leg takes him by surprise. He looks down and sees that beneath the loose shirt, his torso is wrapped in bandages. His left calf is also wrapped in bandages. That is when Jangjun realizes that he feels quite sticky as if he has been sweating buckets. Bits and pieces of what happened are flashing through his mind, but his head hurts far too much to piece them all together. Jangjun finds himself falling back on the futon with a loud groan of pain._ _

__“Hyung! You’re awake! You’re really awake!” Joochan’s voice exclaims from somewhere in the room._ _

__At the sound of a familiar voice, Jangjun manages to open his eyes again and witnesses Joochan zooming towards him with a face-splitting grin and teary eyes. Joochan falls on his knees at the side of Jangjun’s futon, and snuggles against Jangjun’s shoulder, making sure to be cautious of his hyung’s injury. Jangjun feels a sense of relief blossoming in his chest, and reciprocates the affection by wrapping one arm around Joochan’s form._ _

__Once they pull away from the embrace, Jangjun bombards Joochan with questions._ _

__“Are you alright? Are you hurt? What happened to this?” Jangjun frames Joochan’s face with his hand as he looks at the fading bruise on Joochan’s cheekbone._ _

__“Yes, yes, it’s nothing, hyung, I’m fine. I’m so happy hyung is awake! I was so scared!” Joochan exclaims._ _

__Suddenly, the random fragments of recollection he has are coming together to form one big realization. The predicament that they are in dawns on Jangjun, and he immediately feels his heart sinking with anxiety._ _

__“Where are they? Where’s Donghyun? Seungmin? Where’s Jaehyun?” Jangjun blurts out, struggling to sit up despite the immense pain he’s feeling in his torso._ _

__“They are okay, hyung. Jaehyun’s fever is gone, too,” Joochan assures, helping Jangjun sit up. “But we’re in another pack’s territory. They brought us here.”_ _

__“Did they harm you while I was asleep?” Jangjun interrogates, eyes scanning the boy for more bruises or injuries._ _

__Joochan shakes his head, “No, no, they are really kind to us, hyung. Donghyunnie and I didn’t trust them at first, but they fed us, and took care of Jaehyun too. Donghyun said that Jibeom kept looking at us as if he wanted to kill us. He was angry because Seungmin hyung seriously hurt Jibeom’s brother. But his brother is okay now, and Jaehyun said that Jibeom suddenly became nicer to them. They—”_ _

__Joochan stops, narrowing his eyes as he scents the air suspiciously. He transforms in his wolf form and stiffly stands guard looking at the curtain that acts as a door to the room. Jangjun hears footsteps, but because of his still aching head, he cannot scent the approaching stranger. The footsteps grow louder and louder until the curtain parts. A strangely familiar beautiful face peeks inside, meeting Jangjun’s eyes._ _

__“You’re awake,” the beautiful man with mocha brown hair states and Joochan drops his guard wolf act, significantly relaxing while excitedly wagging his tail._ _

__The beautiful man disappears from beneath the curtain once again. They hear some shuffling and whispers from outside. From the sound alone, Jangjun thinks that there must be at least three wolves outside. Once again, he tries sniffing the air, but his headache makes him unable to do so._ _

__Jangjun’s senses are dull, causing him to feel extremely uneasy._ _

__Several minutes pass by and the curtain parts again. The beautiful man fully enters and Jangjun finally has the chance to see him in his full glory. He is very tall, his limbs are long, but he moves in a way that is poised and graceful as he places the tray full of mouth-watering food next to Jangjun’s futon. Joochan, now back in his human form, eagerly sits next to the newcomer. Seeing how Joochan seems to be very ecstatic to see the beautiful man, Jangjun regards Joochan reproachfully._ _

__“Who are you?” Jangjun curtly snaps, a sense of distrust spreading in his heart._ _

__A glass of water is carefully thrust to him by the beautiful man, but Jangjun dares not to touch it. He glares at it distastefully. But the beautiful man does not seem to be put off by his attitude. Instead, he smiles kindly at Jangjun._ _

__“I’m Jaeseok. You and your pups are in our home,” he says._ _

__Jangjun does not say anything in reply. His headache is getting worse as he urges his brain to think of a way on how he and his young wolves can get away from there as soon as possible._ _

__“Hyung,” Joochan tentatively begins, warily looking at Jangjun. “It’s okay. They don’t want to hurt us. Especially Jaeseok hyung. He’s the only one Donghyunnie and I fully trust…”_ _

__Jangjun remains silent as he narrows his eyes at Joochan before moving to Jaeseok who still has a kind smile on his face._ _

__“I completely understand if you do not trust me. But you must consider this,” Jaeseok says, “if we want to hurt you and your pups, we could have easily done so while you were in your most vulnerable state. You were in heat for 2 weeks, shifting in and out of oblivion. Although Joochan here had been most loyal and valiant, watching over you and not letting anyone at all–not even his own brothers–to come near you, I must say that it will not take much effort to snuff him out of the way if my pack members and I truly want to harm you._ _

__But here you are, completely untouched. We nursed one of your pups back to health, fed and clothed the others. We don’t wish to hurt you. We came in peace to your territory, but defensively acted only when one of ours had been attacked first.”_ _

__Even though there is not a hint of accusation or anger from Jaeseok, Joochan still hangs his head low in guilt and shame. He was the one who attacked Jibeom first, after all. Meanwhile, Jaeseok continues his monologue._ _

__“I’m unaware of the horrors you and your pups might have experienced in the past, so I obviously don’t have the right to tell you to trust me. It’s completely up to you.”_ _

__With that, Jaeseok puts the glass of water back on the tray. He gives his one last kind smile before he walks out of the room, leaving the tray filled with water and bowls of food beside Jangjun’s futon._ _

__Joochan looks really sad as he peers up at Jangjun’s unreadable expression._ _

__“Hyung, they really _did_ come in peace. They explained it to Seungmin hyung, and Seungmin hyung explained to us. They accidentally came across our cave and sensed that someone was sick. They just wanted to see if they could help Jaehyun, but Seungmin hyung got scared and sent his distress signal,” Joochan says in a small voice._ _

__“Joochan, I expected better from you and Donghyun not to trust so easily,” Jangjun scolds, frowning at the young alpha who again, stares at him with a look of pure betrayal._ _

__“But they are really good wolves, hyung!” Joochan bursts out defiantly._ _

__“Joochan,” Jangjun says warningly._ _

__The young alpha looks like he wants to say more, but the look on Jangjun’s face makes him hold his tongue. Instead, Joochan does something that takes Jangjun by surprise. He grabs the glass of water, and drinks it in one shot. He takes the bowl of soup and sips it, takes a piece of the fish and the vegetables, and eats a spoonful of rice. When he is done, he stubbornly looks at Jangjun, cheeks endearingly bulging with food._ _

__“I’m not dead,” Joochan says, in a sort of muffled, matter-of-factly tone._ _

__Before Jangjun could say anything, Joochan swallows and speaks again, “I don’t care if hyung doesn’t trust Jaeseok hyung or the others. Just trust the food. It’s not poisoned, so eat, hyung.”_ _

__Again, Jangjun is taken aback._ _

__“Just eat, hyung, please. I don’t want you to die. You must be hungry and thirsty after your heat,” Joochan urges him._ _

__The look of defiance is gone from Joochan’s face and is replaced with a pleading look. Jangjun watches him refill the glass of water and brings it in front of Jangjun’s face._ _

__“Please, Jangjun hyung,” Joochan begs._ _

__Jangjun moves his nose close to the water, and inhales deeply. Poison has a strong, foul smell, therefore, Jangjun knows that he would be able to smell it even in through his weakened senses. He sniffs, but detects nothing out of the ordinary, so he takes the glass from Joochan. He takes a tentative sip. Once the cool liquid touches his tongue, however, he finds himself fervently taking large gulp after large gulp. He has never been this thirsty in his entire life._ _

__By the time he is finished with the glass, Joochan is grinning at him._ _

__“See, hyung? It’s just water,” Joochan says. “Now hyung has to eat!”_ _

__Joochan picks up the bowl of steamed fish with some vegetables and presents it to Jangjun who in turn, has his eyes narrowed suspiciously once again._ _

__“Come on, Jangjunnie hyung, it’s delicious! Jaeseok hyung’s food is really good.”_ _

__Upon catching Jangjun’s sharp stare, Joochan quickly back-pedals, lisp getting more prominent as he fibs through his teeth, “B-But of course, your cooking is better!”_ _

__“Of course,” Jangjun mutters as he proceeds to sniff the food again for poison._ _

__Apart from the delicious scent of the fresh fish and fresh vegetables, Jangjun cannot detect any poison on it either, so he takes the bowl from Joochan and starts to eat. Again, once the warm food touches his tongue, Jangjun could not stop eating anymore. He is far too famished to control himself._ _

__“Told you his food is delicious!” Joochan chirps._ _

__Jangjun lets out a grumpy grunt of agreement as he continues to stuff his face with the delicious food. As soon as he started, he is also done eating. The water jug and the bowls of food are all empty now, and Joochan is openly rejoicing that Jangjun finally ate after two weeks of being in heat._ _

__Now that his stomach is full and contented with food, Jangjun’s headache is gone. His senses are still not back to their normal state, but they are significantly sharper now. Jangjun attempts to sniff the air once more, and once he could not smell any of the young wolves under his care, his anxiety returns._ _

__“Where are they? Where are Seungmin, Jaehyun, and Donghyun?” Jangjun asks Joochan who is gathering all the utensils back on the tray._ _

__Before Joochan could give him an answer, the curtain of the sleeping quarters parts once again, and Jaeseok appears. He still has that smile on his kind face._ _

__“Your pups have just finished their lunch. I asked them to boil some herbs for you to aid the healing of your injuries,” Jaeseok says._ _

__Jangjun does not say anything in reply once again, so Jaeseok continues to speak._ _

__“I’ll take that, Joochan,” Jaeseok says, pertaining to the tray filled with empty utensils._ _

__The tall man walks further inside the sleeping quarters. Jangjun belatedly realizes that there is a small boy with pale skin and pleasant face who is clinging onto the hem of Jaeseok’s shirt. The boy’s hand is clinging onto Jaeseok for dear life as he walks closely behind, timidly stealing glances at Jangjun._ _

__“Hello, Bomin!” Joochan greets, waving at the small boy named Bomin._ _

__“Hi, hyung,” Bomin greets back, beaming at Joochan so widely that his pink gums and pearly whites are showing and his eyes have endearingly turned into crescents._ _

__Jangjun feels his heart melt a little. This must be that small snow white wolf who bit and injured his leg._ _

__“Ah, this is my son,” Jaeseok introduces, gently urging Bomin forward, but the boy shyly backs away again and hides behind Jaeseok’s long legs. “Come on, Bomin. Be polite and say hello.”_ _

__With that, Bomin finally shows himself. Albeit still looking shy, Bomin finally says, “Hello, I’m Bomin...I’m six. My parents are Daeyeol and Jaeseok. Nice to meet you.”_ _

__“N-Nice to meet you too. You can call me Jangjun hyung,” Jangjun says with a hesitant smile._ _

__Bomin gives him a quick smile before seeking shelter yet again behind Jaeseok who ruffles his raven hair affectionately. Joochan chuckles and pats Bomin’s shoulder._ _

__“Joochan, I suggest you eat your lunch at the dining table. You have been cooped up in this room since you got here,” Jaeseok says._ _

__Joochan looks at Jangjun worriedly, so Jaeseok adds, “Your brothers are coming with the tea shortly. You can leave your Jangjun hyung in their care then follow me outside for lunch.”_ _

____

*******

The previous nights that Jangjun spent in this unfamiliar hut, he has not been in the right state of mind to appreciate how warm and cozy it is. There is a fire delicately crackling in a stone fireplace a few feet from him. The layers of the cushiony futon and the velvety fleece is much better than the one layer of pelt that they lay on top of the cold hard ground of the cave. A little to Jangjun’s left, there is a rectangular window, proudly displaying the blanket of stars shining brightly above them, twinkling and winking at him as he gazes up through heavy lids.

Back at their cave, Jangjun never gets to see the night sky that much. They had to cover the cave’s entrance with a boulder for safety reasons. Since he regained his consciousness and discovered that they are in a foreign territory, Jangjun feels like he is drowning in a sea of his own fears. His injuries are not permitting him to set out on a journey back to their home, so he feels as if he is being held there against his will. 

However, seeing the magnificent view for the first time after a long while ignites a small sparkle of happiness in his heart. 

“Warm.”

Jangjun turns to his side and smiles at the sight of Jaehyun prodding at Jangjun’s side with his face. He rubs his nose against the fabric of Jangjun’s shirt a few times before settling down again into a peaceful slumber. Joochan is on his other side, arms tightly clinging around Jangjun’s arm as he softly snores in his sleep. Seungmin is curled up above Jangjun’s head with a smile on his small face. Jangjun is certain that the boy might be having a good dream if he’s smiling so widely like that. Lastly, Donghyun is positioned below Joochan, clinging onto Jangjun’s uninjured leg.

It is tight fit for the five of them, but Jangjun cannot find it in his heart to complain when being in their presence provides such a great relief for him. The last time he had been conscious, he thought that they would all die. But fortune favored them. They are all still alive, safe, and together with a roof over their heads.

Seungmin, Jaehyun, Donghyun, and Joochan all think that being found by Jaeseok’s pack is a blessing in disguise. Bless their little hearts for they even go as far as saying that they have finally found a pack to belong in. 

Regretfully, Jangjun feels that they should not stay long. By being here, they are already treading a dangerous terrain. The real identities of these wolves are unknown. They might tell Jangjun their names, smile to his face, and feed him hot meals, but that does not mean that they are truly who they claim to be. Horrible experiences in his past caused Jangjun to develop a terrible trait of being unable to trust anyone who seems more capable than him, and he’s been told by Seungmin that there are three alphas in Jaeseok’s pack. 

Jangjun learned that powerful wolves, especially alphas, have the tendency to exploit the ones they deem weaker than them. 

There is a scar shaped like a sinister cross encased in a triangle on the back of his neck, one that does not only bear the crest of a cruel pack, but also bears the tale that still haunts him after all these years. 

Like Jaehyun, Jangjun was the youngest son of the leader of a powerful pack in the north. Their pack was flourishing, they were composed of highly civilized wolves. They have basic technology that greatly helped in everyday chores, modern weapons, and a small well-trained army to yield these weapons. The only problem they had was their long standing dispute with the neighboring pack which could escalate into a war should one of them make a wrong move. 

Jangjun had an older sister who was an alpha. He could still remember how exceptionally talented she was, how she was treated with reverence, like some sort of a talisman. An alpha who was a female was considered a blessing from nature after all. She was intelligent, strong, and charismatic. Jangjun greatly admired and loved his sister, and in return, she cared and loved him deeply as well. Jangjun’s parents claimed to love him too. He knew that they loved him. It was just not as great as their love for Jangjun’s alpha sister. Even though they had been raised the same way, training both the body and the mind, Jangjun could tell that his sister had always been destined for greater things. She was already being groomed to succeed their father as the pack leader. Jangjun accepted that already. He was happy for his sister.

But it doesn’t mean it did not hurt Jangjun when he learned of the path that his parents had decided for him. Being the omega that he is, Jangjun was used as a mere bargaining chip for their pack to settle that decade-long dispute with the neighboring pack. Jangjun was supposed to mate with the son of their pack leader who was much older than him. He was scandalized by what his father was asking him to do. 

Naturally, Jangjun protested and even begged not to be mated with anyone his heart and soul did not choose. But somehow, Jangjun’s fear of being unable to contribute anything at all for the well-being of their pack got the better of him, so he reverently bowed to his fate. 

The moment Jangjun gave his word, he started regularly meeting the alpha he was supposed to mate with in order to get to know him better. The name of his betrothed was Sungjin. Although much older than him and physically unattractive, Jangjun found Sungjin charming. He showed how much he respected Jangjun and promised that he would cherish him. However, when Jangjun was sent off to Sungjin’s territory for them to finally be mated, Sungjin showed his true colors. To this day, the horror and humiliation Jangjun had been subjected to when he stepped foot on their territory still makes his skin crawl and his insides curl with disgust. All the servants that came with him were immediately murdered, his belongings burnt, and his dignity marred. Jangjun cannot bear to dwell on the details. All he knows is that the scar on the back of his neck is the only wound that never disappeared. That was the intention of Sungjin, anyway. To give Jangjun a permanent reminder of the torment he went through. 

But the thing that broke Jangjun’s heart the most was being told that his suffering was all in vain, because they were planning to kill Jangjun’s family and the rest of his pack anyway–with or without Jangjun mating with Sungjin.

Jangjun’s pack was ambushed in the middle of the night. Sungjin’s pack possessed weapons in quantities that they could have never imagined. Jangjun’s territory was burnt to the ground, everyone—even innocent pups—was killed. As the wind carried the sounds of destruction and agony from his homeland, Jangjun could only weep in a filthy prison cell. He seriously considered ending his own life before his captors could have the pleasure to do so. 

But in some lucky twist of fate, Jangjun escaped through the help of a kind soul from Sungjin’s pack. It is a shame that in Jangjun’s despair to erase everything that happened there, the face and the identity of his savior had also been forgotten.

As thoughts of his escape invades his mind, Jangjun soon drifts off into a sleep filled with the nightmares of his past.

*******

The next day, Jangjun is gently shaken awake, and has never been more relieved when the first thing that he saw was Jaeseok’s pleasant face bathing in the bright rays of the morning sun. There are no shouting, agony, or destruction. Only Jaeseok’s glistening smile that made him feel strangely safe. His eyes are sparkling as he informs Jangjun that he has a gift for him.

“I’m still not as good as my mother was, but it’ll keep you warm,” Jaeseok babbles, putting a hand-knitted cerulean sweater on Jangjun’s lap. 

“Y-You didn’t have to,” Jangjun says, still blinking away remnants of sleep. 

“I had to,” Jaeseok replies. He pulls the curtains close and turns to Jangjun again with his sparkling eyes. “Just say thank you.”

Unable to suppress a small smile at the undeniably nice gesture, Jangjun says, “Thank you.”

“Alright,” Jaeseok chuckles. “I’ll leave you to change, then I’ll help you out of the room so you can join us for breakfast.”

At the mention of having breakfast with the _others_ , meaning Jaeseok’s pack members, a funny feeling crawls in Jangjun’s chest. His heart is beating madly to the point that it is almost painful. Even though there is curiosity, a larger part of him feels anxious at the thought of meeting them. For years, Jangjun had been fending for himself and the young wolves. This is the first time in a long time that he will be meeting fully-grown alphas again.

Jangjun lifts his shirt. He expects to shudder because of the cold weather, but because of his nervous thoughts, the atmosphere seems warmer and more humid. Nonetheless, he puts on the sweater Jaeseok knitted for him. He marvels at the comfort it provides once it perfectly wraps around his body. It is a little loose, but the material is so cozy that Jangjun does not want to take it off ever again.

“Are you ready, Jangjun?” Jaeseok calls out from outside. 

“I am,” he answers. 

In a heartbeat, Jaeseok re-enters and a grin quickly spreads on his face upon laying eyes on Jangjun. 

“The color really suits you,” Jaeseok remarks. 

Slightly feeling embarrassed because of the complement, Jangjun averts his eyes. Careful not to aggravate Jangjun’s wounded leg, Jaeseok very cautiously escorts him out of the room that he’s been in for more than two weeks. They trudge along a narrow hallway before immediately coming face to face with a guy with dijon hair who is almost as tall as Jaeseok. He also has a kind smile as Jangjun silently scrutinize him. 

“This is Daeyeol, our pack leader,” Jaeseok introduces the tall male.

“I’m also Jaeseok’s mate. Nice to finally meet you fully conscious,” he says, holding his hand out which Jangjun just stares at suspiciously.

Daeyeol, sensing the distrust that Jangjun is feeling, awkwardly withdraws his hand and just uses it to rub the back of his neck sheepishly. 

“I’ve been warned by Seungmin that you might act like this,” Daeyeol nervously laughs.”

“Well, I’m not certain of your intentions for trespassing on our territory, and bringing us here,” Jangjun says. 

“I completely understand and I apologize for the disturbance we caused. But we really came in peace. We just sensed a sick wolf while we were hunting near your cave, and we wanted to see if we could help them in any way. Everything was a mess when you collapsed, and we did not want to leave you and your pups alone there. It is unsafe.”

Daeyeol pauses to gauge Jangjun’s blank expression. He apprehensively licks his lips and resumes talking.

“Although, this does not really justify us trespassing, I hope you can believe that we really do not have bad intentions.”

Jangjun intently looks at Daeyeol with pursed lips while Jaeseok just silently stands there, still supporting Jangjun’s weight. Daeyeol does not look deceitful. His face is kind and for a pack leader alpha, he seems humble enough to know that they have done wrong and apologize for it. 

Urged by the small voice of his conscience, Jangjun slowly holds out his hand for a formal handshake.

“I’m Jangjun.”

Grinning, Daeyeol earnestly shakes it.

“Nice to meet you!” Daeyeol says. 

As soon as he says that, Bomin comes skipping inside, looking sweaty and has some dirt on his forehead and nose. Nonetheless, he seems cheerful as he clings onto Daeyeol while staring at Jangjun with his big black eyes.

“Good morning,” Bomin says, giving him a gummy smile, “Jangjun hyung.”

Jangjun smiles down at Bomin, feeling touched that the young wolf remembers his name.

“Hello, Bomin,” Jangjun replies. 

“Go call your hyungs, Bomin-ah. Tell them breakfast is ready,” Jaeseok says as he leads Jangjun towards the dainty kitchen where a long circular table is already decorated with delicious-looking breakfast dishes. 

“Okay!” Bomin brightly says before storming out of the front door again. 

As Jaeseok helps Jangjun to sit on a wooden chair, Jangjun hears Bomin calling the others. Not more than a few seconds later, Seungmin, Donghyun, and Joochan trickle in one by one, their faces rosey red from the cold weather yet adorned with happy smiles that turn even happier upon spotting Jangjun sitting at the table. They excitedly greet Jangjun as they gather around him. Donghyun starts telling him something about crop-planting while Joochan talks about going hunting while Seungmin silently marvels at the sight of Jangjun at the breakfast table as if he has not seen him in years. Jangjun is happy with the enthusiasm that Donghyun and Joochan are exhibiting, but he soon realizes that Jaehyun is nowhere to be found. 

“Where is Jaehyun?” he asks. 

Seungmin says with a roll of his eyes, “He’s probably with Jibeom. Again. Don’t worry, hyung, I’m sure Bominnie already called them.”

“Those two have become really inseparable since you guys got here,” Jaeseok pipes up as he lays down the dishes on the table. 

Intrigued, Jangjun furrows his brows. He heard Joochan mention something about a Jibeom, but aside from that, Jangjun does not know anything about him. Because of his past, Jaehyun finds it difficult to open up and socialize, so hearing that he is spending time with someone he barely knows really raises Jangjun’s curiosity about this Jibeom. 

Soon enough, more people come in. A tall, skinny young man with umber hair and haughty-looking expression marches in. His chin is covered in dirt, and his umber locks are damp with sweat, making them stick to his forehead. The expression on the newcomer’s face makes Jangjun a little uneasy, but once their eyes meet, he receives a wide smile that looks borderline creepy. Jangjun can only blink in surprise.

“Hello! I’m Youngtaek,” Youngtaek introduces himself as he slumps on the chair across Jangjun. 

“Youngtaek, wash your filthy hands and face first!” Jaeseok reprimands, pulling Youngtaek up by the scruff of his shirt.

As Jangjun stares at Youngtaek and Jaeseok in amusement, three more people enter followed by Bomin. Among them is Jaehyun who grins delightfully upon seeing that Jangjun is finally out of bed. Beside Jaehyun is a boy who is a little shorter. He has golden brown hair that beautifully complements his slightly tanned skin.

“Hyung, this is Jibeom!” Jaehyun says as he pulls that tan boy to stand in front of Jangjun. “He’s 13 just like me, Donghyun, and Joochan.”

“Hi, Jibeom,” Jangjun greets, scrutinizing Jaehyun’s new friend without being too obvious of what he is doing. 

“Hello,” Jibeom says, politely bowing in greeting.

Jibeom cannot seem to meet Jangjun’s eyes as he fidgets and shifts his weight from foot to foot. 

“He can’t look at hyung in the eye because he wanted us killed when we first got here,” Joochan chimes in. 

“That was before!” Jibeom says in defense. 

“The thought still crossed your tiny brain,” Jaehyun interjects, rolling his eyes and surprising Jibeom. 

 

“But you said we’ll forget about it!” Jibeom argues. 

“I said I’ll forgive you, not forget about it!” Jaehyun sticks his tongue out. 

Jibeom mocks Jaehyun’s voice that is unusually deep for a 13-year-old. This riles Jaehyun up, but before it escalates into something else, someone intervenes.

“Jibeom, behave yourself.”

Jangjun looks up only to find himself getting wonderstruck at the sight of a strikingly handsome man with tan skin and messy locks of dark pewter hair. 

“I’m sorry, hyung-nim,” Jibeom apologizes, looking down on his hands in guilt. Jaehyun awkwardly moves away from Jibeom to go to Jaeseok so he could wash his hands too. 

“This is Sungyoon. He’s Jibeom’s older brother, and my right hand man around here,” Daeyeol introduces the tan-skinned man. 

The energy that Sungyoon emits is mysterious. His dark fringes are long, almost veiling his eyes that are equally as inky as his hair. Strangely, when Jangjun looks into them, he feels something warm in his chest as if a pup is nestled against it. His senses are heightened, pupils fully dilated to take in as much of Sungyoon as he could while his nose scents him. 

An unmated alpha.

No wonder Jangjun is feeling this way. He just went through his heat alone, and this is just his instincts yearning for a mate. Yes, just instincts.

“I’m Jangjun,” Jangjun finally speaks, grateful that his voice does not quiver. 

“Pleasure to make your acquaintance,” Sungyoon nods his head. He sits on the chair across Jangjun and laces his fingers together. “I deeply apologize for injuring you. Jaeseok told me you fractured a couple of ribs.” 

The sound of Sungyoon’s voice makes that warm feeling return, but this time accompanied by an unexplainable stirring at the pit of his stomach.

“I-It’s okay,” Jangjun stutters, avoiding Sungyoon’s eyes in an attempt to calm himself a little. Not wanting things to be awkward, Jangjun adds, “I heard that Seungmin injured you seriously too. I’m sorry about that.”

_Wait. Why am I apologizing? They were the one who trespassed._ Jangjun thinks as he bites his tongue.

“I completely understand Seungmin’s reaction. He’s very protective of you–all of them are protective. I’m fine now. It does not take long for me to heal, so there really is no need to apologize,” Sungyoon replies.

Jaeseok returns with the young wolves with their hands and face all clean, and they start to eat. The small dining table is crowded and the dishes Jaeseok cooked are humble, just enough for everybody to have one serving of everything. With eleven of them all eating together, there are at least three different conversations going on at the same time. Jangjun looks over to the young wolves and sees Joochan and Donghyun talking to Bomin animatedly, while Jibeom and Jaehyun are bickering good-naturedly. Youngtaek and Seungmin are having a hushed conversation next to them. Meanwhile, Daeyeol and Jaeseok are doing their best to include Jangjun in theirs, and Jangjun appreciates the effort, but is still very cautious not to say too much information about himself and the others. In the midst of all the chaos, Jangjun’s headache that has been bothering him since he regained his consciousness is surprisingly subsiding. 

Even though Jangjun is enjoying his conversation with the couple, he cannot help but avert his attention to Sungyoon from time to time. The alpha is quiet, opting to just listen and blend in the background as he eats his food with such finesse fit for someone from the upper class. The way Sungyoon speaks is also questionably formal that Jangjun finds himself wondering if Sungyoon had been part of a prominent family. The more Jangjun stares at Sungyoon, the more comfortable he feels. The warm feeling in his chest is spreading all over his body and has now reached his toes. The feeling is strange, and Jangjun has no idea why he is experiencing this, but he does not have anything against it either. 

_I seriously have to get a hold of myself,_ Jangjun thinks as he sips some water. 

“Jangjunnie hyung!” Donghyun suddenly pipes up beside Jangjun. 

“Yes?” Jangjun says, tearing his attention away from Sungyoon to give Donghyun his attention. 

“Can we go fishing with Sungyoon hyung and Jibeom later?” Donghyun asks, putting his hands together under his chin in an attempt to act cute while Joochan leans on Donghyun’s shoulders to look at Jangjun with puppy eyes as well. 

“Please hyung?” Jaehyun chimes in from the other side of the table with Seungmin nodding beside him, all of them are flashing puppy eyes at him. 

“You have nothing to worry about, Jangjun hyung,” Seungmin says, “because we’ve already been fishing with them for so many times now. Nothing bad happened to us, so please, please let us.”

With that, Jibeom also joins in albeit a little timidly, “Yeah, they’re safe with Yoon hyung and I.”

Jangjun glances at Jibeom who is looking at him pleadingly before averting his eyes to Sungyoon who is hesitantly throwing glances at Jangjun before he himself decides to speak up.

“You kids ought to be around your Jangjun hyung first. He is not yet familiar with his new surroundings. I’m certain you can join us some other time,” Sungyoon finally says.

Seungmin, Jaehyun, Jibeom, Donghyun, and Joochan simultaneously look crestfallen. Nevertheless, they did not complain or protest.

“Okay, we’ll just stay with Jangjun hyung,” Seungmin says, trying to look cheerful but his brows are drooping down more than usual. 

“You could tell us stories about your noona again, hyung,” Joochan says.

Jangjun rolls his eyes, because he knows that the kids are just trying to sound cheerful. Seungmin, Jaehyun, and Donghyun have been going on and on and on about the river last night, effectively making Joochan envious of their adventures. Jangjun knows that more than fishing, the kids like playing on that riverbank. From what Jangjun heard from their stories, there is a tire swing and a treehouse there, so it really is no wonder that they prefer to go there than to be with Jangjun. 

To say that Jangjun is not the slightest sad about this will be a lie. Before, their world had been tiny and it revolved around Jangjun and their tiny cave that they call their home. The young wolves seldom played, and just focused on helping Jangjun with the chores. But his joy of witnessing them finally acting their age overweighs his sadness. 

“You can go with Jibeom and his hyung,” Jangjun declares. 

With that, the younger wolves all cheer and hurriedly finish their breakfast, so that they could go to the river already. Jangjun watches them with amusement. Jaeseok tells them off for eating too fast when Youngtaek choked. 

“I wanna come too!” Bomin suddenly exclaims from between Donghyun and Joochan. 

“You know you can’t, Bomin,” Jaeseok says at once. 

“But why not, papa?” Bomin pouts. “Youngtaek and Jibeom hyung are always fishing with Sungyoon hyung. Why can’t Bomin come too?” 

“Because you’re still too young to fish, anyway,” Jaeseok answers. 

“Papa brought Bomin and Youngtaek hyung there once,” Bomin protests, pertaining to his other papa, Daeyeol. “And we didn’t even fish! We just played by the swings and the treehouse. It was really fun. Bomin saw a lot of birds and flowers.”

Jaeseok disapprovingly looks at Daeyeol, making the alpha squirm in his seat.

“That’s because your papa was with you. Papa has to help me with the chores today. He can’t come with you, so you can’t join too,” Jaeseok says. 

Bomin’s big black eyes are now shining with tears as he silently stares at Jaeseok pleadingly. But seeing that Jaeseok will not back down easily, Bomin turns to Daeyeol who looks hopelessly apologetic towards his son.

Bomin turns to Sungyoon as his last resort. 

To Jangjun’s surprise, Sungyoon mischievously winks at Bomin before clearing his throat. 

“I can help you with the crops, Jaeseok,” Sungyoon says. “Daeyeol hyung can accompany the kids instead, so Bomin can join.”

“Great idea, hyung!” Bomin chirps, averting his eyes at Jaeseok hopefully.

Jaeseok frowns at Sungyoon, and turns his attention back at Bomin who is now giving him his best kicked puppy eyes, even going as far as making whimpering noises. Even Jangjun, who is merely a bystander watching Bomin’s aegyo from the sideline admits that he looks pretty irresistible. Jangjun does not know if Jaeseok is trustworthy if he can refuse Bomin’s adorable face.

After a few seconds of pondering and trying to resist Bomin’s charms, Jaeseok finally gives in, “Oh, alright.”

Bomin cheers along with the other young wolves. 

“But you are not allowed to swim in the river! Do you understand me, Bomin?” Jaeseok says. 

“Okay!” Bomin beams. 

“Now, finish your meal all of you.”

In no time, they have finished their breakfast and cheerfully set off to the river with Daeyeol and Youngtaek carrying fishing equipments.

*******

Jangjun, now sitting on a rocking chair in front of the hut, has a clear view of the front yard where Sungyoon and Jaeseok are working on their crops. Sungyoon is constructing some sort of a trap for pesky rodents while Jaeseok is harvesting some vegetables.

A few inches from Jangjun’s feet lays a basin of potatoes that Jaeseok asked him to peel to be used in their lunch. Feeling that he is finally being useful after being rejected to help clean the dining room and wash the dishes, Jangjun is more than happy to be peeling potatoes. He doesn’t even mind how dull the peeler is. He’s just happy to be out and about catching some daylight and fresh air in the front porch. 

When he is done peeling his third potato, Jangjun decides to look up to see the progress of the trap that Sungyoon is making. He kind of regrets it, because as he looks up, he sees that Sungyoon has already taken off his top. Sungyoon’s perfectly toned torso is now in display, causing Jangjun to involuntarily gulp.

The universe is obviously testing him. 

Sungyoon picks up an axe to chop a piece of wood and as he does, his right arm flexes, muscles and veins bulging through his deliciously smooth tanned skin. At this point, Jangjun unconsciously stops breathing. In some sort of trance, Jangjun’s eyes are following every movement that Sungyoon makes. 

Abandoning all sense of self-control, Jangjun permits his gaze to roam around the exposed skin. He goes from Sungyoon’s torso up to his broad shoulders, his thick neck, his prominent adam’s apple, and finally his strikingly gorgeous face. His thin lips are rosy and parted, revealing endearingly large front teeth. Sungyoon’s nose looks like it had been sculpted to perfection by the gods. His long locks are now plastered with sweat against his forehead, obscuring his inky eyes from Jangjun’s view.

Jangjun wonders how someone who is as perfect as Sungyoon can be unmated.

Jangjun prides himself as a strong omega who is not easily influenced by an alpha’s charm. He had met many of them, hailing from prominent packs from all over the country, descendants of warriors and heroes. But none of them had come close to capturing his attention the way Sungyoon is doing right now. 

Maybe it is because of how long he had been living as a rogue wolf. It has been so long since he met a fully-grown alpha. 

_Yes,_ Jangjun thinks, _that must be it! It cannot be anything else._

Jangjun has been so deep in his thoughts that he does not notice that Sungyoon is done constructing and setting up the rodent trap. He only realizes this when he sees that Sungyoon is walking over to where he is seated, still without a shirt on. Jangjun panics a little, fusses with his hair and pretends to crouch down to inspect the potatoes at his feet. Sungyoon says something to him. However, Jangjun is too preoccupied with mentally telling himself over and over again not to look stupid or say anything foolish, so Sungyoon crouches down to get his attention just in time for Jangjun to look up. 

Surprise beyond his wits that he finds his face just mere inches away from the alpha, a shriek of shock and horror rips out from Jangjun’s throat. At the sound of Jangjun’s loud voice, Sungyoon jumps away in surprise too and lands on his butt on the dirty ground. Jaeseok looks at them in alarm, but when he realizes that it was just Jangjun being scared of nothing, Jaeseok goes back to what he’s doing with a shake of his head.

“What?” Jangjun squeaks, hand resting against his rioting heart. 

“I am sorry for startling you,” Sungyoon says in an apologetic tone, yet there is a ghost of an amused smile on his face as he looks at Jangjun and pulls himself to stand up once again.

Finally managing to gather his bearings, Jangjun runs his fingers through his hair and shakes his head. “No, um, it’s fine…I was just spacing out…”

Sungyoon nods in understanding without saying anything while Jangjun fumbles with the peeler in his hands. After a long stretch of awkward silence, Jangjun finally has the strength to clear his throat and speak. 

“What do you want?” Jangjun asks, mentally congratulating himself for not stuttering despite the erratic beating of his heart. 

“Nothing. I am done helping Jaeseok with the crops and the trap, so I came here to see if you need help peeling those,” Sungyoon says, gesturing towards the potatoes at Jangjun’s feet. 

“Oh, yeah...I guess you can help–if you want,” Jangjun adds the latter part quickly as to not sound demanding. 

“Alright,” Sungyoon says. 

To Jangjun’s amusement, Sungyoon sits on the ground and starts to peel a potato with his axe. _Expertly_. Once Sungyoon is done, he gets another one. Before Sungyoon can finish peeling that one again, Jangjun takes a potato too. He just can’t lose to potato peeling, okay? 

“Is our territory to your liking?” Sungyoon pipes up after a long stretch of comfortable silence. 

Jangjun shrugs, “It is very nice. Lots of vegetation to be self-sufficient.”

“Yes. We could live for many weeks without hunting,” Sungyoon nods. 

Again, the silence that ensues is broken by Sungyoon.

“How long have you been living in that cave?” 

“Well, I think it has been five years. It is more or less around that long. It is difficult to keep up with the passing of time when you are in the middle of the woods.”

“I admire you for surviving that long without belonging in a pack and with vulnerable pups under your care, too. It is quite remarkable.”

“Of course, I am capable of taking care of myself and protecting them. I am not a weak omega, if that is what you are thinking,” Jangjun says a little too aggressively.

“I apologize for coming off that way. But that is not the case at all. On the contrary, I do think you are very strong, and it truly fascinates me,” Sungyoon retorts.

Jangjun could feel his face warming up in slight embarrassment. Now this attractive alpha might think that he is rude. Jangjun does not really know why he cares about what Sungyoon thinks of him, but he wants the latter to have a good impression of him. 

“Joochan mentioned that you often hunt alone. Is that true?” Sungyoon says.

“That is true. I don’t want to put their lives in danger by bringing them alone. They are not properly trained either, so even if they think they are very good in hunting, I’m sure some overly wild animal can easily send them panicking.” 

“I see…” Sungyoon muses before going completely silent.

For a split second, Jangjun thought that Sungyoon has finally grown tired of trying to initiate a conversation with Jangjun. But he was proven wrong when Sungyoon spoke again. Where did the quiet Sungyoon from the breakfast table go?

“While you are staying with us, I could train your pups how to properly hunt. Of course, only if you let me.” 

Jangjun stops peeling the potato and stares at Sungyoon, eyes narrowed in distrust. Sungyoon chuckles and flips his pewter hair out of his eyes, giving Jangjun a full view of his dark eyes that have turned adorable now that they are scrunched up in a smile.

“I do understand that you do not trust me at all. But I assure you that there will be no need to be worried. This,” Sungyoon gestures to the field in front of them, “will be our training grounds, so you are more than welcome to supervise every move I make around your pups.”

Unable to think of anything else to say, Jangjun merely blurts out, “They are not _my_ pups.”

“I am aware. But they are under your care, so I assume they are as good as yours,” Sungyoon shrugs, picking up the last potato they need to peel.

“I guess it would be a pertinent life skill to teach them proper hunting,” Jangjun mumbles, a little too softly, but with the way Sungyoon looks at him with another smile, Jangjun is sure that the alpha heard it. 

After the last potato has been peeled, Sungyoon puts them all back in the basin. They just sit there in silence, watching Jaeseok tending to the crops. 

“Jangjun,” Sungyoon says in a voice so tender that Jangjun cannot help but turn his head to look at the alpha. 

Sungyoon is not meeting his eyes, but he continues to speak. 

“Don’t you…” Sungyoon begins in that same quiet voice. He sighs and fumbles with the handle of his axe for a while before he finally gathers the will to continue. “Don’t you remember me?” 

“What are you talking about?” Jangjun frowns.

Sungyoon finally turns his head to look at Jangjun. His expression is unreadable, but Jangjun could smell the disappointment in the air. 

“Perhaps this will make you remember me.”

Even before Jangjun could say anything, Sungyoon turns his torso slightly so that his bare muscular back is facing Jangjun. He raises his hand and moves the unruly dark pewter locks out of the way to reveal a scar on his nape.

Jangjun gasps. 

Staring back at him is a scar shaped like sinister cross encased in a triangle. The very same one branded on his own nape.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Super sorry for taking way too long to upload the second chapter (ಥ﹏ಥ) I don't even have an excuse. I just got a little lazy (ಥ﹏ಥ) but do let me know what you think of it so far~~~ （●＞ω＜●）


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